MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. – May 18, 2009 – Fifty entrepreneurs will soon have more money in their pockets to give their businesses a boost in this tough economy. All are finalists in the Small Business United Grant Competition sponsored by Intuit Inc. (Nasdaq: INTU), maker of the best-selling QuickBooks® financial software. Each finalist will receive a $5,000 business grant, plus free Intuit software and services.

Judges selected the finalists from more than 1,900 submissions. The finalists hail from 43 cities in 23 states, coast to coast, and range from architects and accountants to restaurateurs and retailers. The meet the finalists click here.

But the race isn’t over yet. The finalists are now competing for an additional grand prize of $25,000, or one of four $10,000 runner-up grants. To win, they need America’s help.

To make their case, finalists created videos telling their personal business stories that are available at www.smallbusinessunited.com. The videos range from anecdotes about overcoming adversity to serving customers better during tough economic times. The public can view and rate the videos until May 31.

“These finalists truly reflect the can-do spirit of small business and America’s entrepreneurs,” said Kiran Patel, executive vice president and general manager of Intuit’s small business group. “It was tough for the judges to narrow the list from the nearly 2,000 entries we received. We appreciate all of the businesses that entered the competition, for sharing their stories of inspiration and aspiration, and bringing the small business community together over the past few months.”

The competition is part of Intuit’s Small Business United initiative, launched earlier this year to give America’s 27 million small businesses a boost. More than 1 millionentrepreneurs have visited the Small Business United Web site to seek advice from their peers and to take advantage of the campaign’s other offerings, which include free Intuit products, services and resources.